Unravel
by lillivanessi11
Summary: what if the damage has been done. what if the deeply coiled bitterness cannot be unraveled? Will/Mac and other cannon ships.
1. Chapter 1

a/n: Thank you for all who read Hurricanes and Changes and asked me to continue writing for this pairing. I am flattered. Truly. It has taken me a while to come up with a new creative angle for Mac/Will but I think I have found something to keep us interested until July 14th! Thanks for reading. Rating is higher for language, probably drug use, and maybe sex. idk. i don't want to limit myself. ;)

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Unravel. Part 1.

"When are you going to forget?" she asked. Her eyes looked at him in earnest.

"Forget what?" He tried to pretend he didn't know what question she was asking.

"That you're mad at me." She looked down at the papers on her desk and tried to suppress the tears that were inevitable whenever she thought about this subject.

He couldn't answer.

….

After she found out about the message, she was sure that Will would come around any day. This was a huge change in their relationship. Whatever the message said, it had made him so upset that he had Brian Brenner come to the office to give a side my side comparison of her two former boyfriends. She didn't know for sure what it said, but Will's actions all but gave him away.

For the first week she was expecting it any minute. A late night phone call, or an email, perhaps he'd come by her apartment in the middle of the night. She liked that scenario the best and she waited patiently. In her head she already started making plans for their future. After all, it was only a matter of time.

After two weeks she started to worry slightly and made an effort to wear higher heels and shorter skirts in the office. She knew how he felt about her legs.

After a month she blamed the 'American Taliban' backlash. Will was vain, and he hated having any

one dislike him. Their ratings were good, but had fallen slightly since that victorious night. The broadcast seemed to have polarized people into 'love its' or 'hate its.' They focused most of their energy on trying to appeal to more 'love its.'

Once while working in the office he took her out to one of their old favorite Chinese dives that was open until way too late in the evening. She was incredibly hopeful that night and very upset that she hadn't shaved her legs, but Will was a perfect gentleman who put her in a cab and sent her on her merry way back home. Silent tears fell the entire way.

It started to occur to her that the message might not have said at all what she thought. That she was looking into the situation far too in depth. Their working relationship did not suffer though. They were making great television and the best part was that they were enjoying it. The Occupy story was huge and they had another big one about to break.

After two months she started to think about dating again, but the thought repulsed her.

After three months the seed of bitterness was planted and though she didn't know it yet, she had started to resent him. New York was cheery and ready for Christmas, but Mackenzie was in a state of depression. She hadn't felt this way in years. She couldn't say why, but she felt as if he had yelled at her and kicked her out of the apartment all over again. When she looked at him she no longer saw the man she wanted to be with. She saw the man who had tortured her for nearly two years. The man who refused to forgive her for something she couldn't take back. The man that embarrassed her in front of her own office staff, by bringing her ex-boyfriend in to write a story.

Will was the man who shattered her heart, and she no longer believed that he would try to put it back together.

…

Time. He just needed time.

He knew that he loved Mackenzie, but the thought of it terrified him. How could he risk putting everything on the line for her? What if she rejected him? He couldn't risk it. It was too much.

This however, did not stop him from obsessing over her. He mentally catalogued every shoe, every dress, every new makeup style she wore. He knew that she was partial to Prada but that she occasionally wore other designer shoes. They were all gorgeous and over priced. He knew what she was eating, and he made sure that when she wasn't eating enough that he asked her to lunch or to late night dinners.

He dreamed about her. Sometimes scary dreams where she died in the Middle East and he never got to see her again. Sometimes happy dreams, where she was in bed with him snuggled up like old times. However, most of his dreams were of him chasing her around in the god forsaken desert. She got further and further away with each passing week.

He was busy, but truth be told he spent hours thinking about Mackenzie. When he wasn't at work he was pretty much smoking weed and daydreaming.

He hoped that soon he would have the courage to make a move. Or, that he would simply lose control and they would fall into each others arms. He didn't know why he couldn't do it, but he just couldn't.

In November he noticed that Mackenzie seemed to be going out of her way to ignore him. She was completely attentive to him when they were working, but there was no flirtation, no sidelong glances, and no unnecessary touching.

He knew that the new executive on the 37th floor was trying to pick him up. She was smart, pretty, and generally his type. He could definitely sleep with her, but how could he sleep with someone else, when he couldn't stop thinking of Mackenzie? In his own fantasies she was getting him off every morning. Going out with someone else seemed like cheating.

It was cheating. What was wrong with this picture?


	2. chapter 2

a/n thanks for the feedback guys. its it always appreciated. i hope you won't hate me too much after this chapter, but its just a part of the direction i'm exploring. it can't always be unicorns and rainbows...

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unravel, part two.

"Sometimes I feel like the Republican Primary is just a big joke and we should be waiting for the punchline." Will sighed as he looked at the board he and Mac had been working for hours on.

"Unfortunately, its not a joke, and we have to cover it. I'm glad you're not above lamenting the loss of sanity of your own political party." She said as she starting stacking up papers.

This was the first time in weeks she had made a somewhat personal response to him, and Will's little 'Mackenzie' radar was going off full throttle. He decided to see how long he could keep her engaged.

"If Michelle Bachman and Rick Santorum represent my party then, clearly, I don't belong said Party any more."

Mac smiled despite herself. "Rino," She said.

Will laughed, "So which one do you think will get the ticket?"

"Which one do I think should get it, or which one do I think actually will pull it off?" It was getting late, but she hadn't talked politics with Will in ages.

"Both."

"Well, the only candidate that I could imagine myself supporting on their side is Ron Paul, but thats never going to happen, and I don't know how I feel about all that libertarian crap anyway. I will say that he is the only one who doesn't seem openly crazy." She smiled.

"He's a good guy, but he's not conservative enough to win the ticket." Will pushed her on.

"Well, of course not," she laughed, "but I think in the end it will go to Romney. He's the most moderate of the group. The only one with a shot in hell of winning the national stage."

"Too bad he's such a party pooper." Will said.

"I didn't know you'd met him." She finished organizing her pile of papers and stood up from the desk.

Will stood up too, realizing that Mac was trying for an exit. "Yeah I have played golf with him a few times. The whole no drinking thing really takes away from my ability to bond with a man."

"Me too," she laughed as she headed for the door, "Well I'm going to head home. We can finish this nonsense up tomorrow. I'm so sick of these people."

"Mac," He put his hand on the door to block her from leaving, "want to grab a bite to eat? Its late, and I know you skipped lunch."

Mac took a moment to observe him. Then she reminded herself that he was just doing this because he was lonely, not because he wanted to be with her. "Maybe next time," she awkwardly looked down at her watch, "I'm going to pick something up on the way home. I'm tired."

Will was crestfallen but not surprised, she had been going out of her way to avoid spending any time with him outside the office for weeks. "Okay," he said as he moved his hand away from the door and opened it for her, "I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Night," she said as she headed back to her office to collect her things and head home. She mentally congratulated herself for avoiding this. Every other time they had gone out, she always ended the evening alone in her apartment crying into her glass of wine, mourning the loss of the best thing that ever happened to her. She didn't need to continually put herself through this. It wasn't good for her mental health.

Will let the door close and leaned back against it. His heart ached at the rejection.

…

A few weeks later Mac found herself in the ladies room on the 37th floor. Not her favorite place to use the facilities, or spend time in general, but one doesn't always have a choice when nature calls. As she was zipping up her skirt she caught a bit of conversation she really wished she never heard.

"Well we all know its over between them," one female voice said casually, "I mean they are like, DONE."

"Yeah I know, he was totally checking you out the other day, right in front of her," said the other.

"Yes, yes he was, and I to further my argument that they are done, he mentioned the possibility of us going out the other day."

"He did?" and then in a stage whisper, "What did he say?"

"He asked me if I knew of any good places to have Thanksgiving Dinner, and then he asked me what I was doing for the holiday."

"What did you tell him?!"

"Well, I mean, I'm not canceling Thanksgiving with my family to go out on a date with Will McAvoy."

"umm yeah, no you definitely shouldn't, but he was totally feeling you out."

"I know!"

Mac finally exhaled as she heard the bathroom door blessedly close. She shakily went to the sink and washed her hands. 'Just breathe, he doesn't belong to you. If you're going to move on, you have to let him move on too.' She told herself this every day. It seemed to be helping.

…

The day before Thanksgiving, Will and Mac were, as usual, the last people in the office. They had sent off most of the staff the day before so that they could get to their various airports and train stations and get home to visit their families for the long weekend.

Will had been carefully planning how he was going to do this for a while, and he finally worked up the nerve when he found out, through Neil, that Mac was planning on staying home for the holiday. He had even been feeling out the interns for cool places to go out to eat. He approached her office nervously and let himself in.

Mac was bent over paperwork on her desk. Her hair was a mess, and she looked exhausted. She always had a tendency to pour herself into her work, but this was excessive, even for her. Even when she was a mess, she very rarely looked like it.

Her head popped up when he entered. "Hey," she said in monotone before looking back down at whatever she was doing.

"Mac, you looked exhausted." Will walked over behind her desk to get a better look at what she was doing. It looked to be ratings calculations. "Still trying to figure out why Michelle Bachman gets more viewers?"

"Its driving me bloody insane!" she exclaimed pitifully. "No one likes her but they can't get enough of her. I'm so sick of covering this bloody crap."

Will cautiously rested his hands on Mackenzie's shoulder. She recoiled slightly from his touch, which made a part of him want to run out of her office as fast as possible, but he pushed through his fear and began kneading the muscles there.

After fighting it for a second, she groaned and relaxed into his grip. "Thanks, Will." She said quietly as he kept working out her lower trapezious.

"It feels like someone put a packet of Pop Rocks in here, Mac." He said as he kept working on the tight and crunchy feeling muscles under his hands. "I've got a great guy you should go see. He'll get rid of all this."

Mac sat quietly and enjoyed the sensation, trying hard not to enjoy the fact that it was Will who was making her back feel so much better. "Mmmm ok." Was all she could muster.

"So...What are you doing tomorrow?" He knew she didn't have plans, but he couldn't blow his cover.

"Sleeping till noon, and ordering Chinese. You?" She replied sleepily.

"Nothing big. Smoking, drinking, and then hopefully taking you out to dinner?" he was slightly dismayed by her silence, "I have reservations at a great place downtown and I was hoping you'd join me."

He stopped rubbing her shoulders when she became totally rigid. Suddenly she whipped around to look at him. The look in her eye was cold and he was completely caught off guard. "What? Couldn't get your first choice?"

"Whaa...?" He said as he backed away from her.

She rose out of her chair. "Just go Will. I don't want to talk to you."

"I don't understand. What happened?" His eyes earnestly implored her to answer, but she wasn't falling for it.

"Oh I think you know." She crossed her arms in front of her body. "You couldn't get Miss 37th floor to have Thanksgiving with you so you settled for me."

He was shocked. He had no idea what she was talking about. "Mac, I don't know what you're thinking, but I just wanted to spend time with you."

"Yeah as a last resort. Just please leave."

"Mac? Why won't you let me be nice to you anymore?" His voice was soft and it disarmed her only slightly.

"Because, you want me to pretend that everything is ok between us, when its NOT. It never will be! Because you can't fucking forget about what happened! I don't want to spend time with you as FRIENDS. I'm sick of you dragging me around that bloody maze. I'm over it! I can't change what happened. I apologized! A MILLION TIMES! I can't just sit around hoping one day you'll get over it!"

Her face was red and the pitch of her voice was on the edge of hysteria. Will tried to cut in, "Mac...I'm ov"

"STOP! Don't interrupt me! You spent four years hating me, then one year tolerating me, and maybe one night while you were high, you forgave me. BUT THATS NOT ENOUGH. You treated me like SHIT Will! I may have cheated on you, but I was never intentionally cruel to you. I didn't parade every guy I dated around the office like it was a show, I didn't bring your ex into our sacred work space just to fuck with you, I DON'T deserve to be treated like this! AND LETS NOT FORGET ABOUT THE MESSAGE! You're DRIVING ME INSANE! I don't want to be a part of it! Its OVER! Its too fucked up for me to deal with anymore! We just work together! Now get OUT!" She pointed towards the door as he starred at her in horror and shock. No words could form in his generally verbose mind. "OUT." She reaffirmed.

He looked back at her with and realized that she was serious. Nothing he could do or say at that moment could possibly make the situation work. He wanted to kiss her and prove that what she said wasn't true. She couldn't really...could she really be over it?

He backed up, crossed the room, and left in silence.

…

It took Will almost the entire Thanksgiving Break to recover from what happened in Mackenzie's office that night. Had he been shocked? Yes. Initially he was upset and defensive about what had transpired, but after a few days, an ounce of weed, and more takeout than even a respectable New Yorker would admit to, he had come to a conclusion: She was right.

This entire time, he had approached his relationship with her from only his point of view. He had never so much as taken the time to think about what kind of effect it might be having on Mackenzie. After the way he had treated her since she came back, it would be a miracle if she still liked him. Something told him never to give up on a miracle, as cliché as it sounded.

Even though he preferred to stay in seclusion until he had sorted things out, Charlie convinced him to come over to watch the game on Sunday.

Several drinks in, the conversation shifted to the topic that Will had been avoiding and Charlie had been trying to get to all morning.

"So have you told her what was in the message yet?" Charlie asked.

Will looked sullen and took another drink before answering. "Even if I told her right now, I don't think she'd want to hear it. She's umm..."

Charlie raised his eyebrows. "What did you do Will?"

"Nothing, and thats the problem. I think I, I waited too long. I should have told her what the message said back in August, now I think she's moved on to hating me."

"Theres no way she really hates you." He half laughed as he said it.

"You want to hear what she said to me just four nights ago?"

Charlie smiled, "Oh yes I was oh so hoping you would confide in me your deepest secrets. Please go on Mr. McAvoy."

Will rolled his eyes and took a sip of bourbon. "She told me to leave her alone. Well...She told me yeah she pretty much told me to fuck off. She said that I was cruel and unforgiving and that she hates me for punishing her for the past year and a half..."

"Did she actually use the word hate?" Charlie interrupted.

Will considered this, "No, no she didn't. It doesn't matter though, it seems I've done just enough to ruin her. All the joy and optimism seems to have seeped out of her and i'm 100% sure its my fault."

"Definitely."

"And I know she's right. I have been an ass hole to her, I just wish I had realized a few things before it was too late."

Charlie considered the younger man. He had noticed Mackenzie's disposition changing over the past months, but it was subtle. He highly doubted she was beyond saving. "What do you wish you had done?"

"I wish I had kissed her."

"When?"

"Every day." They both smiled a little, "I wish I had told her I loved her. Or that she had gotten my message, either would be better than what really happened. Fucking wire tapping...anyway. I wish I had told her that I forgave her a long time ago and it just took my head a while to catch up with my heart. I can't live without her Charlie, what the hell am I going to do?"

This was the first time Will had voiced any of these things out loud and the weight of the admission did not escape him. Charlie took a sip of bourbon and smiled thoughtfully. "A grand gesture."

"What?"

"You have to come up with a grand gesture."

"Oh come on Charlie, its not the movies."

"You and Mackenzie's relationship could sell a million movies. Its the kind of high stakes thing that requires a grand gesture. Trust me. She isn't going to believe you if you just tell her. She probably won't even let you get near her right now. You, my friend, are going to have to come up with something clever."

And thats when Will started forming a plan.

…

The morning meeting went as usual. Actually, the three weeks since Thanksgiving had gone as usual. Will and Mac had continued to work side by side quite flawlessly. There had been no personal moments between them, no bitter words exchanged, and absolutely no physical interaction.

It was driving Will insane. All he could think about were ways to turn it around. How should he apologize? Would she accept it? Could he get away with just pushing her up against a wall and kissing the living daylights out of her?

"So do you have any thoughts on the Occupy segment?" Mac asked.

After a pause Will realized she was talking to him but he had no idea what she had been saying. "Hmm, yeah, it seems good." He awkwardly took a sip of his coffee while the staff eyed him quizzically.

"Okay... Well it looks like we are in good shape on our segments. One last thing. HR has informed me that I have vacation time that I am required to use, so I'll be out starting next Monday till after New Years. I'll send you the dates in an email. Anyway, Jim is going to be coming back from the Romney campaign to produce while I'm gone. Its really only the two extra weeks since we are off from the 24th through January 2nd, but I know you will all miss me terribly."

Several words of encouragement were heard from around the table. Will's ears were burning. Three weeks off? Mackenzie? He went into panic mode. Was she leaving the show? He knew she had a three year contract, but contracts could easily be broken.

"Alright then, get to work everyone!"

…

Mackenzie heard a knock on the door as she finished cleaning up her desk. Christmas wrappings from staff presents and cards were being discarded or organized into neat piles.

"Come in," she answered distractedly.

Will walked in sheepishly, and looked at the clean desk. "Hey."

"Hi," she answered softly.

"I just wanted to tell you I hope you have a nice vacation. To...well wherever you're going."

"Thanks, Will. I hope you have a Merry Christmas."

He smiled back at her. "Where are you going, anyway?"

"Home." Mac buttoned her jacket and grabbed her purse from a chair.

"Oh, good. That will be nice."

She didn't really know why she lied. She supposed it was just easier, and she didn't really want to talk to Will right now, since he was the reason she was getting the hell out of New York City for the next three weeks. "Well I better get going." She crossed in front of him to head for the door.

He didn't know why he did it but he just couldn't let her leave, "Mac, please..." he grabbed her hand and she stopped moving.

Mackenzie felt chills go up her spine at the contact. She looked at their joined hands, but she couldn't look at his face. She knew she'd give in if she did, and then where would she be? Back to the beginning of their fucked up hell. She had to stay focused.

"Goodbye, Will."

And with that, she was out the door.


	3. Chapter 3

a/n. Again. Thank you for all the love. I fear you won't like me much better during this part, but I promise i'm heading somewhere good. ;) i wasn't planning on publishing this tonight, but i just felt bad not posting, so there are probably plenty of errors in this. sorry!

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Unravel: Part Three. Oceans Away.

As soon as Mac drove up to her rental cottage she knew that this was one of the best ideas she'd ever had. The little green bungalow was up on high stilts so that the view from the deck over looked the Pacific Ocean and let plenty of Hawaiian sunlight into the house.

Despite the past sixteen hours of traveling she felt giddy with excitement when she opened the door to her home for the next three weeks. Simple and beachy is how it was described in the ad and that is exactly what she found inside. Other than the newly renovated kitchen and bathroom, it was essentially a one bedroom surf shack in a prime location.

Mac walked out onto the deck did gazed at her surroundings. It had been three decades since she'd visited Kauai. Her family had taken a Hawaiian vacation when she was eight. It appeared that not much had changed since then. The air was exhilaratingly fresh and salty. She breathed in deeply and smiled at the paradise around her.

She chose the north shore of Kauai because of its relatively 'off the map' status. It was easy to get around, not terribly crowded, and possibly the most spectacular place on earth she ever remembered visiting.

Mac glanced at her phone and saw that there was no service. "Perfect," she smiled as she turned it off and threw it on the coffee table.

As she went about unpacking she suddenly realized she was absolutely famished. She was glad that she had paid the home owner to stock the pantry, because the last thing she wanted to do right now was go out to eat. It was at least a few miles to the nearest restaurant and the road was small and curvy. There were even one lane bridges to cross, which was fine, but a little scary.

She checked out her options and settled for a big bowl of pineapple and guava chunks with a yogurt on the side. It tasted like heaven. She hadn't had anything so fresh in years. Why did she have to live on the one island in the world where there were no natural fruit trees? "Will would love this..." she thought and immediately chastised herself. "This is NOT about him!"

…

The first two days of her trip were primarily spent catching up on sleep. Once she was acclimated to island time, she felt the need to go out and explore. Instead of heading to the beach right across from her house, she drove until the very end of the road to a beach that had been recommended because of its lagoon. Lagoons meant no aquatic life, and no rocks. She had only gotten into the ocean so far up to her knees and she really wanted to go for a real swim. She was determined not to let jellyfish ruin her vacation. (Well really her fear of Jellyfish, since they were not technically 'in season' right now.)

The housekeeper had not lied about the magnificence of the beach. The lagoon had a natural rock barrier stopping marine life from coming into the swimming area. It was spectacularly large, with the ocean to the west side and the mountain cliff to the inside.

She plopped her towel down and reached into her bag for some reading material. She hadn't been able to read anything unrelated to work in such a long time, this would be such a treat. She had asked some of her coworkers for suggestions. Maggie had said 'The Hunger Games." She didn't think a distopian future was something she was particularly keen on reading right now. The new intern had suggested 'Harry Potter' which was ridiculous. Who hadn't read Harry Potter? It also made her wonder if any of her coworkers had read a book that had a primarily adult audience.

She opted for one re-read, one novel, and one book in a series she had been reading over the years. The novel was 'Zeitoun' by Dave Eggers, his books tended to be a little political, so she had set that one aside for now. The other two options were the last in the 'Wicked' series by Gregory Macguire, and her all time childhood favorite, 'Jane Eyre,' by Charlotte Bronte. She wished she had the will power to start on one of the other two books, but she had been yearning for a re-read of Eyre for a long time, and why fight such an ardent desire? It was vacation after all.

After an hour or so, Mac realized she was quite hot, and that a swim would be extremely refreshing. She was still cautious about the possibility of a jellyfish sting, so she went over to the lifeguard stand.

"Umm excuse me," she asked the young man sitting on his perch. 'Umm wow, nice six pack' she thought, as he got up and walked over to the side to talk to her.

"Aloha," he said as he looked over his sunglasses.

"Umm, aloha," she said awkwardly as she tried not to stare as the man's chest too much. She was very thankful for the mirrored Ray-Ban's she bought before the trip.

"How can I help you?" He didn't seem disturbed at all, actually he seemed genuinely interested in helping her. This was a very strange occurrence to anyone used to living in New York City.

"Well I want to go for a swim, and I just wanted to check and make sure there weren't any jellyfish around, I mean has anyone got stung today?" She smiled as she asked him

"Hmm, well I had a fatality earlier this morning, but you're probably ok now." He answered immediately.

Mac's eyebrows show up for a moment until she saw the lifeguard smile at her, "Hey not funny!"

"You know most people ask about sharks." He said.

"Yeah well, I'm not scarred of sharks." She answered confidently.

There were few perks of being a lifeguard, and one of them was flirting with women in bikinis. Though this woman wasn't wearing a bikini, she should have been. Thin as a rail and big boobs. He briefly wondered what the hold up was as he checked her out. He had noticed that she came over by herself. Not totally weird, but not totally common either. She looked like an old hollywood movie star, all pale, in her low neck one piece suit, big floppy hat, and sunglasses. Definitely a stand out amongst the crowd.

He realized he better answer before she thought he was weird. "Ma'am, there are no jellyfish right now. They won't come in until about a week after the new year. We'd put up a sign if there were any sightings."

Mac smiled, "Well thats perfect! Thank you!" she exclaimed as she turned and headed back towards her towel.

A few minutes later Mackenzie was wading out into the water. It was cool and clear. Once she was in up to her chest she decided it was now or never before she plunged head first into the sea. It felt magnificent. She stayed under as long as she could hold her breath just swimming around playfully like a child. When she came up for air she was facing the beach and the sight of the mountain behind it took her breath away.

After her swim, and a generous reapplication of sunscreen, Mac fell asleep on the beach. She couldn't remember feeling this relaxed in at least...well at least since before Pakistan.

…

Christmas was just a few days away now. Mackenzie had been extremely diligent about not checking in with work. She had even managed to avoid watching the broadcast, which was painfully hard, but curiosity was getting the best of her and she finally opened her Macbook. She wanted to look up a few different activities to do on the island anyway.

She managed to find a few restaurants she wanted to check out, a kayak tour, and a beach yoga class she wanted to take before she logged into her ACN email. 'Oh good grief' she thought as hundreds of emails popped up. Fortunately, most of them were just things she was copied on. Nothing of immediate concern. She scrolled through the inbox until she saw the one thing she had secretly been looking for all along. An email from Will.

Mac,

I tried calling you, but it went straight to voice mail, and well I think you know why I was hesitant to leave one.

I just wanted to tell you that I hope you aren't thinking of leaving the show. I know things between us have been, rocky, but I can't imagine doing News Night without you. You haven't taken vacation since you started here, and I'm just worried you might not come back. Please don't take another job.

Anyway, I hope you are having fun with your family. You deserve a nice holiday.

Miss you,

Billy

Mackenzie took a deep breath. As much as she wanted to pretend she didn't receive that email, should couldn't. She read three more times. 'He's scarred I'm leaving?' she thought, 'I guess that makes sense from his point of view.' Will was far too egotistical to think that she was taking a holiday just to get away from him, he thought there had to be some work related catch. 'What? I can't just go on holiday? I am going to break my contract because I'm mad at him?' She snickered at that. 'I wouldn't give him the satisfaction...but he said he missed me...probably just to get me to stay.'

Mac slammed her computer closed in frustration. She shouldn't have looked. Now she'd be thinking about him all night if she didn't do something to stop it.

"I need a drink." She said out loud to no one in particular.

...

Even though the restaurant was packed, Mackenzie didn't have any trouble getting a seat at the bar. There were some perks to traveling alone.

The restaurant was right on a canal, which allowed local fishing boats to come in to sell to the chefs. Mac heard it was the best sushi on the island and she was eager to experience the 'magic' that she read about on their reviews.

"So are we eating or just drinking tonight?" the bartender asked. She was younger than Mac, maybe late twenties and had a shock of gorgeous red curls piled on top of her hair. Mac silently wondered how a redhead could get so tan, but she supposed if you lived here, that was just how it went.

"Definitely both," Mac replied, "Whats great?"

"How adventurous are you?" the girl asked.

"Anything except octopus." Mac replied.

"I think we can do that, want me to just put in some of my favorite rolls?"

"Sounds good to me" Mac replied. She noted that the girl looked impressed.

"Alright, I think I can do that, I'm Emma by the way." She extended her hand.

"Mackenzie, nice to meet you Emma. Whats good to drink around here?"

"Depends if you are a rum person or not. Are you driving?" She asked.

"Yeah but I can stay a while." Mac suddenly realized the down side of dining alone outside of Manhattan where there were limitless forms of transit all hours of the night.

"Sneaky Tiki it is then." And with that Emma headed off to put in the order.

Mackenzie wasn't sure what was in a Sneaky Tiki but it was probably bad. She figured one of any drink wouldn't kill her.

"Oh you're screwed." Suddenly Mackenzie became very aware of a tall man sitting next to her. How come she hadn't noticed him before?

"Oh really?" She replied and turned to look at the handsome stranger. He had salt and pepper hair and hazel eyes. Mackenzie thought she needed more handsome strangers in her life anyway. So this was fortuitous.

"Yeah Emma preys on tourists who think they can drive themselves home. Its her favorite." He casually took a sip of his beer and looked at her.

Mac considered him and decided that this would be situation where a little shameless flirting couldn't hurt anyone. "Well shit. What am I going to do then?" She raised her eyebrows in mock alarm.

"We'll have to see," he replied in his slightly southern accent, "I'm Bud, by the way." He extended his rather large hand in her direction.

Mac's hand met his half way and they shook, "Nice to meet you Bud, I'm Mackenzie. I take it you're a local?"

"I suppose you could call me that. I'm originally from Louisiana, but I've lived here for ten years."

Dammit he was cute, and she was a sucker for adorable southern accents. ' This should be an interesting evening,' she thought to herself.

Just then Emma returned with her drink, which included an umbrella and several other garnishes. Mackenzie couldn't help but smile at how cute it was. "Thanks!" she said to the bartender.

"Cheers," said Bud as he clinked his glass to hers, "to Emma singlehandedly keeping the cab drivers of Kauai employed."

All three of them laughed and Mac took a sip of her drink. It tasted like a fruity heaven, no sting of liquor at all. "This tastes so light."

Emma smirked, "Thats why its sneaky, Mackenzie. Everything in there is alcohol. No fillers."

"Ha Ha." Mackenzie said sarcastically as she took another sip of her drink.

"Leave her alone so she can get drunk Emma." Bud said as Emma lingered.

The bartender gave him a look. "Let me know if this one give you trouble."

"Sure thing." Mac answered before looking up at Bud again and smiling, "Are you going to give me any trouble?"

"It depends on if you want me too." He smiled back at her, "So where are you from Miss Mackenzie?"

They chatted for a while. Mackenzie managed not to disclose too many facts about her life. Just that she lived in New York and that she was visiting Kauai because she needed to get away from her job for a few weeks. It turned out that Bud owned a horse ranch on the island. After he visited on a surf trip he went home and sold everything and moved to Kauai. She was sure there was a real story there somewhere, but she wasn't going to press him for details. After all, she wasn't being terribly forthcoming about her own story either.

The sushi was ridiculous. Mac hadn't tasted seafood this fresh in years. The scallops had a fine and buttery texture, the tuna was so good she could have eaten it plain. Her favorite was the soft shell crab hand roll. It was basically an ice cream cone of crab chunks.

"You're eating like you're starved," Bud chimed in. He seemed very amused at Mackenzie's enthusiasm.

Mac took a break between bites. "Its just that I haven't eaten anything like this in so long..." she made a slight moan as she picked up the crab roll again.

"I thought New York City had lots of good places to eat."

"It does, but nothing this fresh, and anyway you'd have to actually have time to go out and eat it. Half of the time when I eat out its after midnight." She finished her drink with relish. It hadn't been too bad, but she was definitely feeling the booze a little.

Just then she looked up at the television and realized it was tuned into ACN. New Night would be coming on any minute. "Fuck," she said, "Emma!"

The bartender came over looking bemused at remnants of the dinner she had placed there a few minutes ago. "How is your food?"

"Amazing. Can you do me a favor?" she asked.

"Probably."

"Isn't there a game on? I mean I really don't want to watch the NEWS while I'm on vacation!" she exclaimed. As she gestured to the television, she saw Will staring back at her from the news desk.

"Hey I like this show!" Bud said defensively.

"Oh please Bud, you just want to look smart for the lady." Emma grabbed the remote and changed the channel. Relief swept over Mackenzie like a tide. "Want another drink?"

"Umm probably just a water." Mac said sadly, "Otherwise I'd have to get this guy to drive me home, and I'm not sure I can trust him." She winked at Emma who nodded appreciatively.

"Low blow." Bud replied.

"Its all too Nancy Grace. Beautiful woman vacationing alone on island, goes missing after having sushi and too much to drink at local bar. Primary suspect is charismatic horse ranch owner."

Bud laughed at her, "I'm not that charismatic."

"Definitely not like Ted Bundy style." Mac's mild buzz was making her feel a bit looser. She crossed her legs towards Bud so that her calf was touching his leg. He responded by leaning towards her ever so slightly.

Emma returned with Mac's water and took away her empty plates. "Thanks Emma, your choices were amazing."

"Glad you liked it. Now you'll have to come back and visit your favorite bar tender one night when you don't have to drive ok?"

"Absolutely." She laughed as she took a sip of water.

"So, Miss Mackenzie, I know this might seem cliché, but I was wondering if I might get your number." Bud asked with a sly smile on his lips.

"Well Bud, I'd be happy to give you my number, but I don't have any cell service at my place, so that won't really get you very far, will it?" She smiled at him, "But never fear, I have email."

"That works too." He looked relieved. "I'd love to show you around the island a little."

"Maybe I could ride one of your horses." Mac said it before she realized the meaning behind it. Instead of laughing at herself she just lifted an eyebrow suggestively.

He smiled at her and then she laughed, no longer able to take herself seriously. "I think that can be arranged."

Mackenzie wrote down her email on a napkin and gave it to Bud, who looked at it quizzically but made no comment. After they paid their bill he offered to walk her to her car, which she accepted.

"Nice ride." He said as she unlocked her silver mustang convertible.

"Thanks, its growing on me." She said as she opened the door. "It was really swell meeting you Bud."

"You too Mackenzie, hopefully I'll see you soon." He said as she sat down in the car. He closed the door for her and watched as she tucked her hair under a Mets cap she had left sitting in the passenger seat. One always needed a cap for driving a convertible, even if you could only get up to 35 miles an hour around the north shore.

"I'll be counting on it." She said as she turned the engine on. "Goodnight!"

Bud stood there and watched her back out and head down the road. He very rarely met women on vacation in Kauai. It was such a 'couples' place. He smiled happily as he walked to his car.

...

The next day Mac got an email from Bud asking her to come to the ranch. She figured she had nothing to lose. He was cute and frankly, a good distraction.

Their date went well. Mac loved riding and it had been years for her. Bud put her on a horse named Ono and they rode through the land around his ranch. It was unbelievably beautiful and Mac wondered how this man was single. There were some serious catches still out there. What the hell was she doing still hung up about Will?

After about an hour of riding Bud guided them to an area where she could hear water rushing. After they tied up the horses they hiked a few minutes to an absolutely beautiful waterfall.

"See thats the thing about Kauai." Mac said as she starred at the beautiful sign in front of her.

"What" Bud said as he walked up behind her and rested his chin atop her head.

"Theres a waterfall bloody everywhere!" They both laughed and Mac let him hold her hand as they walked down to get a better look.

After they spread their picnic blanket on the ground Bud pulled a bottle of wine out of the saddle bag he had stowed away. He also produced two cups.

"Admit it." Mac said. "You bring all the girls here to murder them."

Bud didn't miss a beat, "Yep. All of them. Cheers." He said as he handed her a glass.

They spent a while at the waterfall mostly chatting about the land and how Bud had found it. The conversation was easy and relaxed. After a while they realized it would be getting dark soon, so they made their way back to the horses and eventually back to the barn.

Mac stayed and helped him take the saddles off and brush down the horses. "I can't believe a city girl from New York, knows this much about horses." Bud teased her as she hung up Ono's reigns.

"Well I didn't grow up in Manhattan." She said.

"I kind of gathered that." Bud said. He had moved quite close to her to hang up another rope.

"What gave it away?" Mac responded slyly.

Bud let out a chuckle and reached out to touch her face. "Miss Mackenzie, you're such an enigma."

Mac wasn't sure how she felt about being this close to him, but she didn't stop it. "Why is that?"

"Oh just a beautiful woman, all alone, halfway across the planet from her job, and even further from her home...I just can't figure out why your putting up with the likes of me." He said as he looked into her eyes.

Mac didn't feel like talking about why she was where she was, so she did the only thing she knew would stop the conversation. She closed the gap between them and kissed the man.

He responded enthusiastically and the heat between them built up quickly. Mac thought he tasted like wine and something else. Something manly. He pushed her against the wall, which made them both groan, but before he could continue they broke apart, primarily to breath. Mac smiled at him and he gazed back, obviously waiting for her to decide what would come next.

"I'd better get going..." She said.

"I thought you might say that." He hadn't moved an inch.

"Bud, thanks for the ride." He chuckled and moved aside for her to get past him.

"You're welcome. I hope you enjoyed it."

"Thoroughly." She said as she headed out of the barn and to her car. "I'll see you soon."

...

Later that night Mac lay in bed restlessly. She had enjoyed her time with Bud, but she felt guilty. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she had a feeling of anxiety about the whole thing. She realized that she could have slept with him. Really, she couldn't figure out what stopped her.

She really just met him, maybe that was it...or maybe it was because she kept involuntarily comparing him to Will. 'Ugh stop it!' she yelled at herself.

Regardless of her feelings for Bud, her feelings for Will weren't going away. She knew it was ridiculous to expect her entire psyche to change in a few days, but she was optimistic. She could say that the feeling of depression and hopelessness she felt in New York was leaving her, but she also couldn't say why.

She resolved to see Bud again, after Christmas. She wanted to spend the holiday by herself. Perhaps all this alone time was why she was feeling so much better? No it was probably just not being around Will.

…

Over Christmas Mackenzie exchanged a few flirty emails with Bud, and they resolved to have dinner on the 27th. Mac would have seen him sooner, but there was a sunset beach yoga she wanted to go to the evening before and Bud had work to do during the day.

She drove to the end of the road where she had cell service so that she could call her parents and was surprised to see several texts from people when she turned on her phone.

Maggie: Merry Christmas Mac! Hope Santa is good to you!

Sloan: Where the hell are you!? Haaaaapppy Christmas! Call me!

Jim: Hope you're having a good vacation, Mac. I don't think I've messed up the show too badly.

Neil: Merry Christmas boss lady! Where are you?

There were several others from friends and then one from Will. Mac breathed deeply before she read it.

Will: Kenz, where are you?

Mac blinked into her phone. What did that mean? She told him she was in London, why would he ask her that. Was he speaking metaphorically? She didn't respond to his email, so surely that must be it. He was probably freaking out about her non-response, and taking it as a sign she was quitting.

She responded to the other messages vaguely. She wasn't telling anyone where she was. Then she came to Will's again. She simply typed 'away.' and pressed send.

…

Dinner with Bud was incredible. They met at a restaurant called 'Postcards' which served all local food. The meal was great and the company was too.

"I was wondering," Bud started as they were finishing their dessert, "What your plans were for New Years."

"No idea. More peace and quiet, I guess." Mac answered truthfully.

Bud thought this sounded sad. "Well I'm heading to Oahu for a New Years gathering at a buddy of mine's...its a big crazy party at his beach house. Every one camps out and we have a big bonfire on the beach. Its a tradition. I was wondering if you'd want to come with me..."

Mac considered him. "Oh Bud, thats really kind..."

He breathed out heavily, he knew rejection when he heard it. 'But you're not interested."

"Its not that, I'm just. I think I've possibly been misleading you. I mean I have no idea where this is going, but we live 5000 miles apart..."

"I know." He replied as he moved his hand to hers, "but I feel something here."

Mac couldn't lie to him, "I'm not looking for a relationship right now Bud. I'm trying to get over my last one."

He knew suspected as much, but he was glad she finally admired it.

Mac realized how she sounded, "I don't want you to think this is a rejection. I just don't think going with you to another island is what I should do right now. Even if I want to."

"I know it was kind of a lot to ask," he said, "will you still be here when I get back?"

"Yeah," she smiled back at him.

"Good."

…

The rest of the week went by slowly. Mac went swimming in the lagoon almost every day. Ate tons of sushi, drank pineapple juice, and got the best message ever.

On New Years Eve she took the sunset yoga class again. It was absolutely incredible to do the sun salutations while listening to the waves crash on the shore behind her. She felt calm and peaceful the entire drive home.

When she walked up the stairs to her door she noticed a small bag hanging off the knob. 'Thats odd,' she thought as she pulled it off and opened the door.

Once inside she sat down on the couch and opened the small bag. Inside was a note written in an unfamiliar scrawl.

Mackenzie,

I'm hoping we can ring in the New Year together. Please meet me tonight on the balcony at the Regis Hotel at 11:45 pm.

-B

PS: Thought you might like these.

She starred at the note. Bud? She thought? It seemed unlikely that he would return from Oahu just to spend New Years with her...perhaps he was more into her than she realized.

She pulled out the box that was also in the bag and opened it. Inside was a stunning necklace. Her breath caught as she pulled it out of he box. It was a long strand of peacock colored pearls. The pearls were separated every few inches by gorgeous silver beads...no wait, she checked the tag, those were gold. It was the kind of piece that she could easily wrap around her neck two or three times or just let it dangle. It was the kind of necklace she loved.

She looked at the clock and realized she only had a few hours to get ready. She smiled as she headed off to the bedroom to figure out what to wear. This night would definitely be interesting.


	4. Chapter 4

a/n: thanks for sticking with me. your kind reviews are really appreciated. i'm so glad you are enjoying the hawaiian setting. its been tricky to write them out of their usual setting, but fun too. :)

oh yes, and i don't own the song 'bali hai' obviously.

* * *

unravel, part four. meanwhile, back at the ranch.

Will wrapped up his last show of 2011 with his usual flourish. To his surprise, Jim had done an excellent job as producer. It wasn't the voice he preferred to hear in his earpiece, despite what Mackenzie might think, but it was an improvement from Don. Not that he disliked Don, he just didn't think like Will, which made it more difficult for the two of them to have a flawless show.

He was finishing up some things in his office when Neil and Lonny walked in. "Hey guys," Will said, "what can I do for you? If your looking for you're Christmas bonus, you better check with payroll." Lonny looked unamused and Neil looked worried. "Seriously, what the fuck guys?"

It was Lonny that finally spoke up, "You know that when you leave the state I am no longer obligated to protect you."

Will nodded, "Yeah..."

"So what the hell are you doing with a ticket to London, Heathrow on your desk?" He finished.

Will considered the two of them. "Why is Neil here?"

Neil looked momentarily confused. "I just came to tell you I'm traveling on the same flight."

Will eyed him narrowly. "And thats important because..."

"Its not really, I just promised Lonny I'd keep an eye on you."

Will looked at Lonny suspiciously before laughing. "Thats ridiculous."

"Its better than nothing. Once you're in the UK you're on your own. Don't be an idiot, and I need you to call me as soon as you know when you are coming back."

"Okay I promise, mummy. Hey at least you have Christmas off." Will said.

"Yeah and hopefully I'll have a still living client afterwards." Lonny said sarcastically, "Let me know when you're ready to leave."

…

"So why are you going to London anyway?" Lonny asked as they started to exit towards JFK.

"I've got stuff to do there." Will answered vaguely.

"Any of this stuff related to Mackenzie?"

Will took a moment. It was stupid to keep his feelings for Mac a secret anymore. "Yep."

"Did she ask you to come?"

"Definitely not." Will admitted as he looked out the window.

Lonny paused for a minute, "You haven't been spending a lot of time with her out of work."

"I'm trying to fix that." Will replied.

"Well then go get her, buddy. She won't date me, so she might as well go out with you." He smiled in the rear view mirror.

"I'm hoping she'll go out with me, but the verdict is still out."

"It would probably help if you brought that box from Tiffany thats in your desk drawer."

Will looked alarmed, "What the hell were you doing going through my desk drawer?"

"Making sure there were no recording devices or explosives."

"Yeah right." Will said as they pulled up to the passenger drop off area.

Lonny had already gotten out to help Will with his carry on, which made Will feel like a loser. 'Who needs help with a carry on?' He thought.

"Well try not to fuck this up, and especially try not to get killed. Merry Christmas." He shook Will's hand, "Neil is over there." He waved to Neil, who apparently had taken the train to the airport.

"Merry Christmas, Lonny. If she won't take me back, you can have her." Will turned and walked towards Neil.

"Hey Will, whats up?" Neil asked cheerfully.

"I feel like I'm being nannied." Will said gruffly as they walked into the terminal.

"Hey, I know its stupid, Lonny just felt better about you flying once he found out that I was coming with you. Otherwise he was going to fly with you himself."

"That is a little ridiculous. What did he think I was going to do on the way back?" Will asked as he handed his passport over to the desk for check-in.

"He thought you would be coming back with Mac."

Will wondered how obvious he was to everyone, and then he wondered why they thought he needed a babysitter on an airplane. He figured it wasn't worth worrying about. "Well lets hope, for Lonny's sake, that it works out that way."

Once Neil had checked in, they headed to security. "Where's your seat?" he said as he looked at his boarding pass.

Will looked down, "umm, 2B."

"Oh right." Neil said.

"What?" Will asked.

"First class. I always forget that there are actually people that do that."

Will stopped and turned around. "Come here Neil."

"What? Did you forget something?" He hurried after him.

Will walked back to the ticket agent and handed him his credit card, "Could you please upgrade this ticket to First Class?" He motioned for Neil to give him his boarding pass.

"Will you really don't have to, thats not what I meant..." Neil felt awkward as Will grabbed his ticket and handed it over to the lady.

"And do the same for his returning trip."

"Yes Sir, Mr. McAvoy. I'll put him in the seat next to yours."

"Great, thank you." He took the ticket and handed it back to Neil, "Merry Christmas."

They started again towards the security line. "Thanks Will, that was really generous."

Will sighed, "I'm trying to put as much good stuff out there in the universe as possible right now."

"Why is that?"

"Because I have to convince Mackenzie to forgive me and to give me another chance, and I already tried once and it didn't go so well." Will stated.

"She'll forgive you." Neil said confidently.

"Oh yeah? What makes you so sure?"

"Well I'm not an expert, but I get the feeling that you and Mac are like star crossed lovers. You're the only people on the planet that can make the other happy. Its probably why its so bad when you're mad at each other too, but she definitely still loves you." Neil didn't talk about personal things very often, he hated to gossip, but he always thought Will and Mac were made for each other.

Will patted Neil on the shoulder as they started putting their items on the tables to be examined by security. Sometimes he forgot how much he liked this kid.

…

Will and Neil had parted ways at the airport. Neil took the tube to his family's home and Will took a cab into central London. He hadn't been here since he visited with Mac. He had always loved London because it made him feel like he was living in one of the stories he had escaped to as a child.

He checked into his hotel and decided to go for a walk. As much as he wanted to run right over to the McHale's home and see Mac, he wanted to wait until Christmas Day for his grand gesture. He also wanted to rethink what he wanted to say to her.

He found himself walking along the Thames and remembering the times he had beheld this view with Mackenzie by his side. She had loved showing him around town and he had enjoyed every minute of it. They had spent the entire Christmas holiday with her family. He had planned to propose to her shortly after they got back. He wimped out and then things went terribly wrong. He tried not to linger on it.

Will knew that he had truly forgiven Mackenzie now. The threat of her leaving him forced this realization upon him. I wished he had realized it sooner, but there was no point in dwelling on the past. He had to focus on tomorrow and exactly how his grand gesture would play out.

Once the sun started to fade, Will popped in a pub for dinner and a few drinks. Afterwards he walked back to his hotel and enjoyed the cheery London streets.

…

Will approached the McHale house cautiously. All of Kensington was done up for the holiday and their intimidating townhouse was no different. He knew whatever happened to him in the next few moments would change his life forever. He shifted the bouquet of roses to his left hand and reached out to knock with his right.

There didn't seem to be much going on inside, but eventually he heard someone coming to answer the door. He swallowed tightly.

Edna, the McHale's housekeeper's cheerful face popped out from behind the red door and an expression of shock overtook her. "Mr. McAvoy!" She exclaimed, "What are you doing here?"

Will was both shocked and relieved that she remembered him, "Hi Edna, Merry Christmas."

"Happy Christmas to you, my dear! Come inside!" She stepped into the house and allowed Will to follow him. "Its been some time since you've been to London, what the occasion?" She asked as she got a better look.

"Well I was hoping to see Mackenzie, I need to talk to her." He answered.

Edna looked at him for a moment, noting the flowers. "Mr. McAvoy, Miss McHale isn't here."

Will didn't understand. "Is she staying somewhere else?"

"No, my dear, I haven't seen her in almost a year! You know McHales are in Sri Lanka for the holiday." Panic started to arise in Will's face. "Oh know darling, you've come all the way here for her haven't you?"

"Is she in Sri Lanka with them?" his grip on the flowers was tightening significantly.

"No, I know she didn't go because they complained about it several times." She felt so bad for the man standing in front of her.

Will was dumbfounded. He had come all the way across an ocean, and he had absolutely no idea where Mackenzie was. "I should get going then." He said as he headed for the door, "Thank you for letting me in Edna."

"It was nothing at all." She said kindly, "Mr. McAvoy?"

He stopped in the now open doorway and looked back at her. "Yes?"

"Whatever you're trying to do, for whatever reason you came to see Miss McHale...don't give up."

"I won't." Will blinked, trying to hold back a tear that was threatening to fall. He handed Edna the bouquet of roses and walked out the door.

The sting of what just happened was starting to take him as he settled himself on a park bench. Where in the world was Mackenzie? Why had she lied to him? He couldn't make sense of it.

It was then when he looked at his phone. He tried calling her again, but just like before, it went straight to voicemail. He texted her out of desperation: "Mac, where are you?" and then put this useless device back in his pocket. It started snowing as he walked back to his hotel.

…

Neil was out with his family enjoying some boxing day shopping when he saw the text from Will. "Call me." it said.

He had been wondering how things were going with him and Mackenzie. He stepped out of the shop to make the call. He was shocked to hear the gruff voice that answered on the other end of the line.

"Will?" he said, "Are you ok?"

"How fast can you get over here?"

"Soon." He hung up the phone, went inside to explain that he had to go do something work related and that he'd be back before dinner. Well he hoped he would be.

...

Will answered the door in his underwear and a t-shirt. His face was slightly haggard and the empty bottles around the room indicated that there had been quite a pity party here last night.

"What happened?" Neil asked as he walked into the the room.

"She's not here." He answered as he lit a cigarette, "I mean not in London. I have no fucking clue where she is."

Neil was both shocked and relieved. He was surprised that Mac had lied about her location, but relieved that there was still hope for this situation to resolve itself. He also realized why Will had called him over here. "Do you have your laptop?"

Will sat on the bed while Neil worked on hacking into Mac's ACN network. If he could get in he could pretty much see everything she had done on her computer, which would hopefully lead to her location.

"I'll give you a million dollars if you get arrested for this." Will said non nonchalantly.

"Hopefully that won't be necessary but thanks for the backup." Neil smirked, "There we go."

Will sat up, "What?"

"We're in."

"So what do we have there?" Will asked.

"Anything she did on her ACN desktop. If she booked the trip from that computer I can probably find it in her Internet history, I also have her email."

"Are you sure she went somewhere?" Neil asked as he began to look through Mackenzie's extremely unorganized desktop.

"Yeah, she texted me."

"What did she say?"

"I asked her where she was and she said 'away'."

Neil turned back to the task at hand. "Here it is." Will came over to look at the screen. "Looks like she's really really away." He pointed to the email he had pulled up with an airline confirmation.

"Hawaii?!" Will exclaimed.

"Eh looks like specifically Kauai. She flew into Lihue."

Will didn't bother to ask why Neil knew the airport code for Kauai, he figured it was just one of those things. "When is she coming back?"

"Not till a week after New Years."

Will groaned at this "that's too long. I need to see her."

Neil looked at his boss. He was right. "Give me some time, I'll figure it out."

"I'm going to take a shower. Help yourself to the mini bar." Will turned and went into the bathroom.

When came out Neil smiled at him. "I've got her."

"Alright, what's the story."

"Well it looks like she rented a house on the north shore for three weeks. She rented a silver Mustang convertible, and she traveled alone." He noticed that Will relaxed considerably at this. "There is one other thing though..."

"Whats that?" Will said.

Neil debated telling Will this, but he figured he may as well know the truth. "She has exchanged emails a few times with a guy names Bud that she met there." He nothiced Will's crestfallen face. "It doesn't look like anything serious really, but just so you know when you get there. Wouldn't want you to get in any bar fights."

"Yeah..." Will said trying to process this information. He decided not to care. He couldn't expect Mac not to see anyone, that would be unreasonable. He'd just have to go there and win her back the old fashioned way.

"I've got the address of where she's staying. Now I'm just going to make it look like I was never here...and we are good." He logged out of the ACN network. "So now what?"

"I've got to get on a flight to Kauai."

"There aren't a lot of good options, I looked online. It's a terrible week for last minute travel."

Will shook his head and grabbed his wallet off of the night stand, "Not when you have one of these." He pulled out a metal black American Express card.

"I didn't think those were real." Neil said.

"It's really not worth the fee for me, but I think it will be today." Will flipped the card over and began dialing the number on the back.

After twenty minutes he had a flight leaving London tomorrow night, which would connect through Seoul and get him to Honolulu in about 24 hours. He had a six hour layover there and then a quick flight to Kauai. They had arranged a car rental and a hotel room for him at the Regis.

"All taken care of." Will said as he sat down the phone.

"You're flying all the way around the world for her." Neil said.

Will hadn't thought of this, "She's worth it."

...

Will spent most of his flights in an ambien induced coma. His layover in Seoul was uneventful, but he felt like a zombie. Traveling like this was definitely wearing on him and he couldn't wait to sleep in a real bed. Even his egg shaped Darth Vader bed on the plane couldn't stop the jet lag.

When he de-boarded in Honolulu he immediately realized that he was ridiculously over dressed. It was 80 degrees and the sun was pouring out of the sky. He had time before his second flight so he took a taxi into Waikiki and walked into Neiman Marcus.

He bought a light pair of pants, a few shirts, sunglasses, and a bathing suit. Them he went to a few other shops and bought flip flops, a few surf shirts, a baseball cap, and some sunscreen. Before he caught a cab back to the airport he walked down to the waterfront at Waikiki Beach. It was stunning, and he wished he could spend more time there. It occurred to him that he was in Hawaii and if he played his cards right, this could turn out to be a pretty nice vacation...but that was a big 'if.'

…

Driving up Puhio Highway in his rental car, Will could not believe the sights he was seeing all around him. He had been to Hawaii before, but only to Kona and Maui. This was something totally different. This was Bali Hai. The song was in his head the moment he saw the first misty green mountain. Rogers and Hammerstein had a song for everything.

_Bali Ha'i will whisper_

_On the wind of the sea:_

_"Here am I, your special island!_

_Come to me, come to me!"_

_Your own special hopes,_

_Your own special dreams,_

_Bloom on the hillside_

_And shine in the streams._

_If you try, you'll find me_

_Where the sky meets the sea._

_"Here am I your special island_

_Come to me, Come to me."_

He knew the song would be stuck in his head the entire time he was here. The island did have a magical appeal. He hoped it would work in his favor. He really hoped this whole business with 'Bud' wasn't serious. He trusted Neil's opinion based on the emails. He refused to read them himself. It felt wrong.

He checked into the Regis, which was impressive even to Will's jet lagged and jaded eyes. The hotel was build into the side of a cliff that jetted out into the sea. It was cleverly designed to work around Kauai's laws about building tall buildings. His room had a small balcony and a view of the ocean. He left the sliding glass door opened turned out the lights and passed out on the big comfy bed for what felt like an eternity.

When he woke up it was sunny outside and he had no idea what day it was or how long he had slept. His blackberry told him it was 8am on the 30th. He hadn't slept that long in years. He assumed his body must really have needed it.

He got up and headed into the bathroom for a much needed shower. As the hot water poured over him he tried to figure out what his 'game plan' should be. He had Mac's address so he could just show up at her place, but somehow that didn't seem grand enough, plus what if that guy was there? He needed something more exciting.

Will spent almost the entire day laying on the beach. He tried not to make himself feel guilty for not immediately seeking out Mackenzie, but the jet lag was killing him and even thinking about what to say to her brought on a headache.

He ate a delicious dinner at the hotel's restaurant and found out that they were having a New Years Eve celebration the following evening. He made a reservation for two.

…

The next day Will had organized a plan. He needed to get Mackenzie to come to the hotel for the New Years party. He decided he needed something along the lines of a formal invitation to give to her. After he had breakfast at a little coffee shop in Hanalei Bay he walked over to a jewelry shop that had just opened. The selection of Hawaiian pearls was impressive.

"Need something special today?" The sales girl asked.

"Yes, definitely." He answered.

"Who are you looking for a...oh I know you..." The girl faltered a little. "I'm sorry, we just don't see a lot of celebrities around here." She blushed a little.

Will smiled, "Its okay, really."

"My husband and I love your news program." She said.

Will didn't think she looked old enough to be married, but then again, women in New York married late. "Thank you, I'm glad people out here are watching it."

She smiled back at him, "So what were you looking for today, Mr. McAvoy?"

"Promise me you won't be telling TMI?" He said.

"Whats that?" she answered.

He found himself telling her his plan. That he wanted to leave the pearls on the doorstep that of a woman he had come here to see and that he wanted to leave her an ambiguous note asking her to come to the party tonight at the Regis.

"Thats so sweet! She doesn't have any idea you're here?" She asked.

"Nope." He said.

"Well we shouldn't ruin the surprise then. Give me her address and I'll deliver whatever you pick out for her. I'll also write the note. That way even if she see's me, she won't know its from you!" She seemed excited to be in on the plan.

Will picked out a long strand that reminded him of the necklace that Mackenzie often wore to work, accept this one wasn't costume jewelry. This one was made of the most beautiful black pearls, so black they had a purple tint to them, and lots of white gold beads.

He told the sales girl, whose name turned out to be Daisy, what to write, paid her, and gave her a generous tip for the delivery service. Now all he could do was wait for the rest of the day to go by and hope Mackenzie showed up.


	5. Chapter 5

a/n: i love you guys for being such faithful readers and reviewers! i am thinking one more chapter after this, but this week is going to be CRAY CRAY in my life, so i'll do my best.

without further ado...

* * *

unravel, part five: the cliff.

Mackenzie looked at herself closely in the mirror. She was wearing a strapless white dress. It had eyelets all over it and she had fallen in love with it the moment she saw. It was made of cotton, but the bodice had boning in it which worked perfectly to hold up her breasts and of course make her waist look even smaller. The skirt swung nicely when she walked and fell just above her knees.

She was weaing a pair of high heeled espadrilles that she bought just for the trip, light makeup, and to top everything off, the necklace. Her shoulders were slightly golden from her extended time in the sun and her hair was resisting all efforts to stay straight, so she had let it dry curly into soft beachy waves. She realized that she hadn't put this much effort into her appearance the entire time she had been here. For some reason, she felt compelled to look her best.

As she drove to the Regis, she couldn't get over the feeling of nerves and excitement going on inside her body. She knew that seeing Bud shouldn't make her feel this way. It was like her body was already convinced of the truth that she hadn't allowed herself to accept; that 'B' didn't stand for Bud at all.

She mentally chastised herself. 'Its not Will. Its not Will...but what if it is Will?' If it was Will standing on the balcony at the Regis, that meant he had been desparate enough to see her that he had come half way around the world for her. That wasn't something you did for someone you didn't love. It meant he wanted her. She breathed deeply. She needed to mentally prepare herself for the dissapointment of seeing Bud on that balcony.

…

Will had showered, shaved, and put on the nice pair of pants and shirt he'd bought in Waikiki. He didn't have a lot of wardobe options so he figured this would have to do. Kauai was a pretty casual place. He doubted anyone would be wearing a tux.

To say that he was nervous would be an understatement. His stomach was in knots. What if she was dissapointed to see him? What if she was mad that he came here? Or worse, what if she just didn't show up?

He headed down to the party. The buffet looked amazing but he couldn't eat anything. He got two glasses of champagne and went out to the balcony. He would know his fate in a few minutes. For now he just starred out into the blackness of the Pacific.

…

Mac's stomach nervously clenched as she walked into the Regis. The hotel lobby was stunning and it was filled with people enjoying the festivities. There was a band playing, and many couples out on the dance floor. It looked like a fun party. She checked in at the desk and headed into the dining room.

She nervously glanced around, checking out the crowd, as she headed towards the balcony. Almost everyone was inside for the countdown, but there were a few people still lingering. A group of excited girls crossed in front of her and then she saw him all the way on the farthest end of the balcony. Her breath hitched and she blinked several times to make sure she was not hallucinating.

Will was facing away from her, but she would recognize his sillouette anywhere. Unconsiously she smiled. This was what she wanted. He had come all this way just for her. She realized that the bitterness within her had unravelled. How could she have ever tried to get over him? There was simply no other man for her to love. She took a step forward and breathed deeply.

Will felt her gaze upon him before he heard her footsteps. He turned around and was taken back by how gorgeous she looked. The smile he saw on her lips made him relax slightly, but Will still felt butterflies. He felt like he was standing on the brink of an enormous cliff and he really hoped she'd jump off of it with him. She smiled back as she walked towards him, shyly.

"Were you expecting someone else?" He asked.

"Maybe, and maybe not."

Her answer bolstered his confidence slightly. "You look beautiful."

"Thanks for the pearls, Billy." She said as her hand went to fiddle with the necklace.

"I'm glad you like them." He tucked a curl behind her ear. Just the minor contact with her sent sparks through his body.

"You came all the way here..." She was having a hard time concentraiting on anything other than the fact that he had just touched her.

Will chuckled, "I needed to tell you something."

Mac tilted her head slightly, "Whats that?"

"I'm sorry." He gazed directly into her eyes and implored her to believe him, "I was so cruel to you over the past two years. The way I acted was unacceptable. I should have been thanking you."

"Thanking me?"

"For coming back. For giving me a show to be proud of, but also for being brave enough to give us a second chance. Even when I was horrible to you, you didn't give up on me. I'm so sorry that I was such an idiot. I'm hoping that maybe you'll accept my apology, because I don't think that I can hold out much longer without you." He paused a moment to let it sink in, "Can you forgive me?"

"That depends."

Will looked curious, "on what?"

Mac knew she could forgive Will, but it didn't matter if he didn't confirm what she was going to say next. "Have you forgiven me?" There was no need for details. He knew exactly what she meant.

Will stepped forward to fill the space between them even more and put his hand on her arm, her skin was so soft to touch. It killed him to look into her eyes and see the pain there.

"I forgave you a long time ago," he started as his thumb started drawing circles on Mackenzie's bicep, "but I was too stupid to realize it, and too stubborn to admit otherwise. I can't hold you accountable anymore for all the misery in my life when you are responsible for most of the happy things too. I made myself miserable, and you did everything right. You wrote, you called, you came back! I ignored it and pretended that I hated you. I'm over it Mac, I just want to love you now, if you'll let me."

Mac couldn't stop the tears that were forming in her eyes from falling. She had been waiting years to hear those words. She felt like a weight was lifted from her body.

"Don't cry, Mac." Will said as he wiped her tears away with his thumb.

"Will..." She breathed in and out a few times. She knew that she needed to say something before Will started to worry. "I love you...so much. Of course I can forgive you, you silly man."

Will's hands were still on her face so it was especially easy for him to reach down and capture her lips with his. At first the kiss was soft and tender, but that lasted only a few seconds. Will's need to taste her was too strong, and he ran his tongue along Mac's top lip. A small moan escaped from the back of her throat and she opened her mouth to give him further access.

Just as he was about to reaquaint himself more thoroughly with Mackenzie's mouth, a the noise of the inside room swelled to a very loud 'HAPPY NEW YEAR!' the band started playing and people were blowing noise makers everywhere.

Will and Mac split apart suddenly from the shock of it. Once they both realized where the noise was coming from they started laughing. Will now had one hand on Mac's cheek and the other on her lower back. Her hands were pressed against his chest.

"Happy New Year, Billy." Mac said as she smiled up at him.

"Happy New Year, Mac." Will bent down for another kiss, this one quite chaste as people from the dining room had started to filter back onto the balcony and the relative privacy they had a few moments ago had vanished.

He reached the hand that was on her cheek down to the balcony rail where he had perched two champagne glasses earlier and handed her one. "Cheers." Mac tapped her glass against his and took a sip.

"Do you want to go inside and check out the party?" Will asked. He had yet to move away from Mackenzie.

"Not particurally," Mac was perfectly happy to stay out here in Will's embrace, "but I am kind of hungry."

"Lets go in, I have a table reservation." They turned to head inside and Will's arm stayed around Mac's shoulder.

Once they were settled into their table their server started bringing out the various dishes that were on the pre-fixed menu. They were both delighted that it was primarily fresh seafood.

They were sitting against a wall in the corner and Will was able to scoot over next to Mac in the curved booth seat so that he could keep her as close as possible. Mac didn't mind at all. She was perfectly happy to never leave his side, but as she ate she started to wonder a few things.

"Will how did you find me?" she asked.

"Well, when I went to London..."

"You went to London?!" Mac interupted him.

"Yes, I did. Edna says hello by the way." He laughed as he said it.

Mac turned so that she was facing Will, her hand on his chest. "Billy! I'm so sorry!"

Will laced his fingers through hers, brought her hand up to his mouth and kissed it. "Don't be. If I hadn't been in London then Neil wouldn't have been able to help me hack your ACN desktop."

Mackenzie blinked at him slowly, "Will...I'm just going to pretend like you didn't tell me that, and then I'm going to change my password tomorrow."

Will laughed, "Fortunately for us you didn't make it too hard for him, apparently you never delete your internet history either, so finding out where you were going wasn't that hard once we were in."

"Did you read my emails?" Mac asked.

Will didn't think lying to her would help him here. "I didn't, but Neil looked through them to get your flight data and the address of your place."

"Did he tell you about anything else?" Mac swallowed nervously.

Will knew where she was going with this. "Oh you mean your island boyfriend? Yeah I knew about that."

Mac smiled, "I'm glad it didn't stop you from coming. You should know it wasn't serious."

"Nothing would have stopped me from coming Mac. I flew around the planet to get here, having competition only made me more detirmined." Will leaned over and kissed Mac's forhead.

"I can't believe you flew all the way to London first." She smiled as she took a sip of her champagne.

"Then Seoul. The airport is very nice. At least I got a cool passport stamp." Will joked.

"Billy, I don't even know what to say to that. You came across the planet to find me."

"Mac, I'd do anything for you." He gazed down at her intensely and then almost whispered, "I love you."

Hearing him say the words was like magic. The most amazing thing was that she entirely believed him. For the first time in a long time Mac felt truly happy. She kissed him lightly on the lips, "I've been waiting a long time to hear that." She said.

"I'm sorry it took me so long to get around to it." He lightly pecked her back.

They both wanted to deepen the kiss, but knew it was inappropriate for where they were. They might have been in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, but Will was still a celebrity, and there had definitely been a few people that recognized him in the hotel. Besides that, neither of them was particurally keen on public displays of affection.

"So where are you staying?" Mac asked innocently.

Will was wondering how long it would take to get around to this. Having her in his arms all night and not being able to ravage her was about to drive him mad. "Here."

"Oh really? Well thats excellent." Mac said as she put her napkin on the table.

"It is?" Will said as he watched her.

"Yes, because I really don't feel like driving home." Mac said as she looked at him mischevously.

"Yes, it IS really late, don't you think we should be getting to sleep?" Will lifted his eyebrows.

"I hope we won't be going to sleep Billy, but you better get me to bed as soon as possible." She whispered into his ear, all the while letting her hand travel from his knee up his thigh.

He sucked in a harsh breath before grabbing her hand with his and removing it from his groin.

"We'd better get going then." He stood up and threw his napkin on the booth behind him.

Mac followed quickly behind him as they headed out of the dining room and into the lobby. Once they were safely in the elevator Will wasted no time in pressing her against the wall. She could feel his erection pressing against her belly. It made her feel happy, and incredibly sexy. His lips captured hers and his tongue was finally able to make its way fully into her mouth, where hers was eager to meet it.

When the elevator stopped he reluctantly pulled away and grabbed her hand to guide her down the hall. They were giggling like teenagers by the time they got to his room and Mac pressed up against his back as he opened the room. Her hands went down to cup his ass – she had always had a thing for that ass- when he blessedly got the key to work.

Once they were inside Mac went over to the sliding glass door to look out onto the balcony. The moon was shining brightly over the ocean and a breeze was coming in. She breathed deeping and turned around to find Will a few feet away simply gazing at her. "Beautiful view." She said.

Will smiled and took the few steps forward he needed to close the space between them. "I was thinking the same thing." He said as he lowered his mouth to the space between her ear and neck. She shivered in response. Will stood up straight and pulled the blinds shut before resuming his exploration of Mackenzie's neck. "I love these, but they have to go." Will said as he unclipped the pearls so that he could have better access.

Mac moaned softly as Will's lips fluttered along her neck and collarbone. She felt intoxicated with lust. She ran her hands up Will's arms and pulled his head away from her neck. Then she reached behind her and undid the clasp and zipper of her dress. Will swallowed as he heard the dress unzip and stood there while Mac slowly pealed the garment off her body. When she was done she kicked the dress to the side as she stood there before him in her heels, a nude colored thong and a matching strapless bra. She smiled at him seductively before she started unbuttoning his shirt. When she was done she slipped it off his shoulders and then lifted his undershirt over his head. Her hands reached up and pulled him back for a hungry kiss.

Will kissed her back fiercely and let his hands freely roam over her body. Her back, her ass, and her breasts were now getting their fair share of attention, but she was still wearing too many clothes. He turned her around and pressed her against the bed where she let herself fall softly onto the white duvet. He looked at her beautiful form before he went to her feet to remove her shoes. Once he was done there, he let his hands travel up her long legs. His thumbs made contact with her hip bones and played there for a moment before moving up to her abdomen. He lightly traced the scar on her stomach, which caused her to breathe in quickly, "Will..." she said.

"Shhh." Will leaned down and kissed the ugly jagged shape that now adorned her stomach. He felt her jumping slightly under his touch before he continued kissing her way up her stomach, inbetween her breasts and up to her mouth again. "I love you."

She smiled fully as she kissed him back, "I love you too, Billy." She kissed him deeply and then pressed her hands to his chest and he obliged by flipping himself over so she could be on top. Once she was there she removed her bra, which made Will's face light up like a Christmas tree. He had really missed those breasts. His hands immediately reached for them and she let out a gasp when his fingers grazed her nipples. "You're wearing too many clothes."

Mac removed herself slightly from her possition on Will's lap so that she could undo his belt, fly, and then she pulled the offending garmet to the ground along with his boxers. She stood up and divested herself of her thong before climing atop him again. Neither of them had been this turned on in a very long time. Mac lowered herself onto him and Will had the feeling that they had infact jumped off that cliff and he hoped that this sensation of flying would never end.


End file.
